Missions & Complexes

I wanted to spark this conversation and get your thoughts. So, for a few weeks I ran highsec DED's 3-4/10's in Angels and Serpentis regions. I could acquire anywhere from 160-500m a day from 'lucky drops' as they call it in corp chat, averaging 200m a day really.

Since I'm making rigs, I figured I would hit up nullsec for some Data/Relic sites. For this week I'm in the Venal area, and weeks prior I've been in others, though can't really remember the regions. But I'm only averaging about 60m a day. I want to attribute it to 'unlucky regions' but not sure. Judging by some other threads I'm not the only one having issues finding data/relic sites, spending hours just to find one site seems a bit annoying.

NOTE: Before you ask, the way I find systems is Dotlan maps based upon jumps within the past 24 hours. I also check each nullsec system I intend to visit for average pilots in space in the last hour, since I really don't wanna lose that nifty little Astero :)

Maybe I should just join a low/null corp or something...

These are my findings from a casual player, I'd be interested in hearing yours.

I don't know if it's just me or not, but I've also been getting a lot more firewalls etc... in data/relic sites. Just got off work so I'm going to make my way back to high-sec got some skills to inject anyhow.

It is a bit like comparing apples to oranges, if the orange was potentially poison. With high sec combat sites you only have to deal with the rats and the very rare ganker. With null for any site there is potential for any one to come and kill you for any reason. Risk vs reward and all that.

For data I have managed as much as 60 mil in a couple of hours in Caldari High Sec. I would say that the null sec runs are potentially more interesting due to the danger and you could always hit that very lucky can.

I petitioned to get my ship back and ccp did just that so I suppose I will be rolling the dice again soon.

Just use wormholes for quick access for fast trips and to get in and out of null sec safely. Sure, it is all random but you may visit different regions in 1 hour or less of gametime. Wspace has many connections to low and null, you won't need to scan for too long until you find one entrance to null.

RNG may have just decided to hate you that day. I've had corpies jump into null and come back not two hours later with a few bil in loot from relic (they mostly skip data) sites.

that's the thing about exploration is it's very RNG based, and some days (or in my case 6 months) the RNG hates you.

I literally did ~ 300 combat sites (in highsec/lowsec) before I got my first faction drop. I've had 12 faction drops from highsec only in the last 2 weeks.

also since data/relic sites have no rats they are generally run right away, and are cherry picked (land, lock all cans, scan, only do the one that has the good loot, leave the rest), those sites take a few hours to go away.

Your best bets are doing them in off hours, or during the week when activity is lower.

200 m from bounties, loot, salvage and boss drops?

Probably new players don't think the same. I respect all types of gameplays and choices but in my opinion HACS should be where they belong, not running 3/10s in high sec. To each their own but i prefer to run combat sites in low and null and don't mess with new bros in frigates or poorly fitted t1 cruisers trying to run the sites.
Low sec isn't so dangerous as you may think and you don't need a 1.5b Gila to run a 5/10.

I've bought gila with passive tank and rlml to test DED 3 an 4. I think i give up data/relics till dust fall off after phoebie changes and market stabilize.

You will be happy with a passive Gila and the income from the combat sites, and likely never bother with data/relic again.

If you fly in Caldari space, maybe we will run into each other.

Gila is a beast. i don't have max skills for it , still it's like hot blade in a butter. Medium drones are awesome. I was thinking to do them in stratios but i'm low on gunnery, and lack amarr cruiser skill.

Test went suprisesly good. I explored amarr and khanid space mostly yesterday, loot was not very high (was unlucky on BR DED4s) but it was high enough to abbadon repetive L4s. There's no need to have base, cargohold is enough to hold 4 sets of racial drones and switch when needed, gila with sisters probe launcher is enough to scan DEDs. I didn't salvage just looted overseers. Basically fantastic break from exploring data/relics. I think i 'll go full explorer carrer now, i'm even consider to cancel my plan to train for golem.

As DMC wrote, we shouldn't compare combat with non combat exploration. Do to DEDs i spend 330 mil (it can be done in much cheaper hulls ofc, i remeber doing my first DED 3 in caracal long time ago), to do data/relic in null you need 40 and one site might return the cost. Also time to do one non combat site is lower.